Memory Lane

This is the church I grew up in...

It sits less than 1/4 of a mile from my grandparents' farmhouse.

Long before it was our church, it was also a schoolhouse. My dad went to school there through grade 4.

I definitely remember this wallpaper. It's in the preschool Sunday school room. My grandma sometimes taught the class. My favorite parts of this class were the flannel-graph stories and the blocks!!

This was in the other classroom. Nice 60s theme, huh? :)

Little stinker.

It was really sad to see how badly things have fallen apart. The church was closed 10 years (?) ago, so it's just been sitting empty. This piano still plays as off-tune as ever! :)

Papa telling the kids stories from when he went to school there. He was just behind that post playing ping-pong when he heard about JFK's assassination.

The nursery. There used to be 2 sets of stacked cribs against that wall. This room also housed the gigantic, ancient copy machine and mini-library.

Soooooo many memories of this sanctuary! Church events, Singspirations, VBS programs, helping lead worship as a high schooler (Dad FORCED me to play the piano one Sunday. I was so mad but we both knew I never would have done it any other way.), and the last memory...right up on that stage is where Aaron proposed to me! The church had been closed for a year or two and had no electricity. I was completely oblivious that he was even going to propose that weekend (Thanksgiving)! He had practically the whole family in on it. They got a bunch of candles up there and lit. We went for a walk--he'd never seen the church before so in we walk and there were all the candles and Aaron dropped to a knee. That might be the best memory from this church! :)

I just found out that those aren't actually stained glass windows! They're like peel and stick window things! I always liked them a lot though.

Jacob and Great Grandpa talkin' shop :) Right in front of them is where the piano used to be.

The entrance. The boys would hang and swing from the overhang.

Entryway--women's bathroom.

This is where we posted information about missionaries and other announcements and had tracts and Daily Breads set out.

What beats this view?! This is what we saw every Sunday on the playground. Wide open spaces and a beautiful sky.

I'm going to miss seeing it when we go to the farm. But, things change.